"As an information specialist, Carson was in daily contact with wildlife biologists in those Fish and Wildlife divisions concerned with predator and pest control. They, along with the biologists at in nearby , were alarmed by some of the the early test results of the new synthetic pesticide dichlorodiphenyl-tricholorethane, known as DDT. Carson was particularly well informed on the progress of this research because her government mentor, friend, and former supervisor Elmer Higgins was collaborating with noted biological Clarence Cottam on a series of research reports on the impact of DDT on fish and other wildlife. These reports came to Carson's desk for editing, and their conclusions were the subject of debate and discussion around the office."